Although this guide was originally created back in 2009, it's now Fall of 2012 and times sure have changed! The sub cap is now 70, and the high end cap is 110. There's Abyssea, Wings of the Goddess, etc. etc. etc. etc......it's high time this guide got a major overhaul! Please understand, this will be a slow work in progress. Also, I will be overhauling this guide with an emphasis on FARMING the materials on THF. Most people have Lv. 99 THF with Treasure Hunter 7 nowadays right? Why not put that THF to good use?

Here's a Walkthrough on how to get the Trainee's Needle! Quest Name: Say It with a Handbag Walkthrough: 1. Speak with Hampu-Kampu at (G-8) in Windurst Waters (S) South Map. 2. Head to (K-4) in Windurst Waters (S) North Map and examine the Door:Acolyte Hostel on the second floor. This will trigger a cutscene. 3. Return to Hampu-Kampu and after the cutscene you will receive Key Item: Torn Patches of Leather. 4. Go to the ground floor of the Tanners' Guild (San d'Oria) (D-8) in present day Southern San d'Oria, and talk to Kipopo to trigger a cutscene. She will ask you to bring Laminated Ram Leather, Sheep Leather and a Silk Thread. 5. You will have to zone after trading the materials to Kipopo. Then speak with Kipopo to trigger another cutscene and receive the Repaired Handbag. Return to Windurst Waters (S) and speak with Hampu-Kampu to trigger a cutscene. 6. Offer him the handbag to receive your reward.(Optional) Return back to Kipopo in Southern San d'Oria in the present with your Trainee's Needle equipped for an additional cutscene and more information about her father.

Guild Point Items(Information gleaned from wiki.ffxiclopedia.org)

10,000 - Tanner's Belt - Novice - Enchantment: Synthesis Image Support 10,000 - Tanning - Novice - This special leathercraft ability allows you to soak skins in a Tanning Vat, making it easier to process more leather with one crystal. 40,000 - Leather Ensorcellment - Novice - This special tanning ability allows you to enchant leather with the power of black magic. 40,000 - Leather Purification - Novice - This special tanning ability allows you to enchant leather with the power of white magic. 70,000 - Tanner's Gloves - Journeyman - A pair of gloves that gives +1 to your Leathercraft skill 80,000 - Tanner's Ring - Craftsman - Leathercraft Success Rate +1%. Cannot synthesize high quality items. 100,000 - Tanner's Apron - Artisan - An apron that gives +1 to your Leathercraft skill 150,000 - Golden Fleece - Veteran - A piece of Furniture that gives Moghancement: Leathercraft Skill. 200,000 - Tanner's Signboard - Veteran - A sign used by leatherworkers to indicate their guild's services to the public. 15,000 - TANNER'S EMBLEM - Veteran - Probably one of the most important things to get for a Leathercrafter. Used to make a Tanners' Stall, which gives you Leathercraft Skill +5 when placed inside your Mog House

Advanced Support NPCs

Orechiniel - Southern San d'Oria (E-8) Zwaluh - Al Zahbi (G-11)

Leathercraft Skill Armor

Leatherworker's Torque: Obtained from brown Treasure Casket in Quicksand Caves. Gives +2 to Leathercraft skill. Lv. 70 to equip it, and it can be used right away from Lv. 0 Leathercraft all the way to the end. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED you obtain this!!!

Leathercrafting Basics (Note: All AH prices listed are current Shiva server sales as of 9/26/2012)

Since a lot of Leathercrafting involves turning hides into leather, the 3 main items you will need a lot of are Dark Crystals, Windurstian Tea Leaves, and Distilled Water. Distilled Water is cheap (12g each) and can be purchased at NPCs all over Vana'diel. However, the most convenient spot to buy it with regard to Leathercraft is at Raimbroy's Grocery which is near the Leathercraft Guild. Windy Tea Leaves stacks sell for around 500-1000g at the AH (Shiva server current price) or if you're not in a major rush, you can get them from Baehu-Faehu in Windurst Waters for 18g - 22g each. Dark Crystal stacks sell anywhere between 5000-6000g and are almost always available. However, you can get Dark Clusters off elementals in various locales across Vana'diel and save yourself from cutting into your potential profits!

The Guide Itself

The new "REVAMPED" guide will mention a few things. First, your target mob. Second, is "other notable drops." Third will be "potential profits". However, there will be points in the guide where I will say DO NOT SELL. This will be because the item/items in question will be used for another skill up synth in the future.

0-2 - Sheep Leather - Dark Crystal: Sheepskin, 1 Windy Tea Leaf, 1 Distilled Water - Target Monster: Broo (Beadeaux) Other Notable Drops: Selbina Milk - Simply go to Beadeaux and kill Broo. Take multiple stacks of synthesis materials with you, as you will be farming the skins and immediately converting them to leather in the field. DO NOT SELL the Sheep Leather, they will be used in the next two items in the list. Selbina Milk is a commonly used item for Cooking skill ups. They sell for 1500g per stack. Also, in the future, if you'd like to return here and farm Sheepskin and convert to Sheep Leather, a stack of Sheep Leather sells for 30,000g per stack. A terrific place to farm in the future, but FOR NOW, keep your Sheep Leather! http://i718.photobucket.com/albums/ww183/YeagerRamuh/ffxi_20120929_005651.png

2-5 - Leather Bandanna - Wind Crystal: Sheep Leather - A very easy synth, and a good bridge synth to the next recepie which caps at 11. Wind Crystal stacks sell for about 4000g and are very common. Save yourself the gil and farm Wind Clusters. Best spot is Buburimu Peninsula as wind weather is common there. These don't NPC for very much, so it's better to Desynth these to get some of your Sheep Leather back. Farm Lightning Clusters in Konschtat Highlands during Thunderstorm weather, which comes up pretty often there.

5-11 - Solea - Wind Crystal: Sheep Leather x 2 - Another easy synth, but uses up twice the Sheep Leather. Synth and Desynth to get some of your Sheep Leather back. If you happen to run out of Sheep Leather, head back out to Beadeaux and farm/synth in the field. Take this to cap, and on the way, pick up a Rabbit Mantle for your first Guild test.

11-16 - Lizard Gloves - Earth Crystal: Lizard Skin, Leather Gloves - Go to Crawler's Nest for your Lizard Skins. Target mob: Labyrinth Lizard Other notable drops: Lizard Egg - Lizard Skins are a near 100% drop and can drop more than 1 skin too. Farm about 8-10 stacks of Lizard Skins at Crawler's Nest and then go to Southern San d'Oria's Armor Shop. Purchase Leather Gloves from the NPC (330 gil) and begin making Lizard Gloves right there. The resulting gloves do not sell well at the Auction House, so just sell them to the NPC at the Armor Shop. They sell to NPC for approximately 150 gil, so you're losing a small amount of gil doing that. However, stacks of Lizard Eggs sell very well at the Auction House ranging from 5,000g per stack up to 10,000g per stack. So whatever gil you lose selling the Lizard Gloves to the NPC is covered by the sales of the Lizard Eggs. Also, be sure to purchase or synth a Lizard Cesti for your next guild test.

16-21 - Dhalmel Leather - Dark Crystal: Dhalmel Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - Target mob: Bull Dhalmel (Buburimu Peninsula) Other notable drops: Giant Femur, Dhalmel Meat: This is the point where you can really begin making a decent amount of gil. Kill any Dhalmel you come across. If a hide drops, convert it to leather right away. As you progress, the other drops will start to clog up your inventory. Dhalmel Meat doesn't sell very well at Auction House, so run over to Mhaura and sell it to NPC for 60g each. The meat is a near 100% drop rate by the way. Giant Femurs are used in multiple Bonecraft synths for skill ups. They sell quickly at the Auction House for 1,000g each. However, if you're not willing to wait for them to sell, or if you have other things up at the AH that hasn't sold, the Giant Femurs can sell to NPC for a little over 200g each. Potential profits: Dhalmel Leather is used in "Gobbiebag Part 1" quest and sell well individually. Currently 7,000g each. A full stack of Dhalmel Leather is a little slower to sell, but the current price range is 70,000 - 80,000. How you sell these is your choice, in the end, it's all profit! http://i718.photobucket.com/albums/ww183/YeagerRamuh/ffxi_20120926_234303.png

21-24 - Bugard Leather - Dark Crystal: Bugard Skin, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - Target mob: Bugard / Gigantobugard (Misareaux Coast) - Other notable drops: Bugard Tusk, High-Quality Bugard Skin - The Bugard Skin is about a 40-50% drop rate. Farm and synth in the field and take it to the 24 cap. This synth is only good as a bridge, nothing more. Both the Bugard Tusk and HQ Bugard Skin are NPC fodder. 750g for the Tusk, 400g for the HQ Skin. The Bugard Leather also does not sell very well at all. They only sell as singles, and not stacks. 7000g for individual leathers currently. If you would rather not wait, they sell to NPC for about 450g each (5400g per stack) Not a whole lot of profit, but you do get to 24 doing this. Once you hit 24, purchase or synth a Dhalmel Mantle for the next Guild Test. http://i718.photobucket.com/albums/ww183/YeagerRamuh/ffxi_20120928_181015.png

24-30 - Parchment - Dark Crystal: Rolanberry, Sheep Leather - Rolanberries can be purchased in Port Jeuno in the Duty Free Shop immediately next to the Auction House NPCs for 120g each. Go back to Beadeaux and farm the Sheep Leathers. Take this to 30 and sell the results if you can. Singles sell for about 4,000g each, as they are a required item to complete the BRD flag quest (to become a Bard). Stacks will not sell. If you sell the Parchments to NPC, they sell for 100-105g each, so you'll lose a little bit of gil. The next synth will more than make up for it. http://i718.photobucket.com/albums/ww183/YeagerRamuh/ffxi_20120929_101614.png

30-35 - Ram Leather - Dark Crystal: Ram Skin, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - Target mob: Hammering Ram (Abyssea - La Thiene) - Other notable drops: Ram Horns - Ram Skins are a 100% drop. Enter Abyssea with a load of synthesis materials, kill Rams, get drops, synth to Ram Leather. Rinse/Repeat until you hit the cap at 35. DO NOT SELL the Ram Leather, as they will be needed for the next several levels. However, once you've become a high level Leathercrafter (or you hit the cap at 70) Ram Leather is an excellent source of income. Ram Horns are used in multiple Bonecraft recepies, they sell for 1,000-2,000g each. Individual Ram Leathers are needed for a Gobbiebag Quest, and stacks of Ram Leathers are often purchased for other high level synthesis recepies for various guilds. Individual Ram Leather sells for 5,000g each, and stacks of Ram Leather sell for 35,000g. http://i718.photobucket.com/albums/ww183/YeagerRamuh/ffxi_20120929_212702.png

35-43 - Waistbelt - Wind Crystal: x2 Ram Leather, Grass Thread - Grass Thread is incredibly easy to farm. Get a bunch of Wind Crystals together and head out to Giddeus. Murder any Yagudo you come across, as you are after their Yagudo Necklaces. It is a low level Clothcraft synth so you can make yourself multiple stacks of Grass Threads easily. Once you're done, head back to San d'Oria and begin making the Waistbelts. This is a bit of a jump, so I recommend you get HQ Support for the first few levels of this. (If you have the Leatherworker's Torque that also helps tremendously) If you run out of Ram Leather, simply head back to Abyssea: La Thiene and farm them up. The Waistbelts do not sell at the Auction House, so just sell directly to the NPC. With max fame, you will get around 1,700g each. At 38-40 buy or synth a Magic Belt for the next guild test.

(SPECIAL NOTE! - Now that you're over Lv. 40 Leathercraft the Trainee's Needle will no longer work)

43-49 - Ram Mantle - Ice Crystal: Ram Skin, Wool Thread - Wool Thread makes it's first appearance in your Leathercrafting career here. Sadly at this point it is pretty much unavoidable. If you have Clothcraft 35+ on your main, or on a mule, the best way to obtain Wool Threads is by desynthing Gigas Socks. Once you have about 5-6 stacks of Wool Threads, head back to Abyssea La Thiene and kill the Rams there. Since this is another slightly large level gap, farm as many Ram Skins as you can hold, return to Southern San d'Oria and get HQ support from the guild for the first few levels. Once you are able to make these comfortably without support, you can kill Rams, synth Mantles, rinse/repeat. Take this to the 49 cap at all costs. The next item on the list is a pain.

48-53 - Raptor Mantle - Earth Crystal: Grass Thread, Raptor Skin x 2 - If you buy everything from the Auction House, this can get very pricy. However, Grass Threads are very easy to get (see Yagudo Necklaces & Wind Crystals) and so are Raptor Skins. Unfortunately, the only spot to get a semi-decent (20%) drop rate with TH7 are the Raptors at Valley of Sorrows. The going will be slow, but will be worth it in the end. Take this up to 52. Although this caps at 53, stop at 52 and immediately go to Tiger Leathers. Raptor Mantles do sell at 20k a pop currently on the AH, as it is needed for a Mog House upgrade. The sell speed is somewhat slow though, so be wary of that. If you just want to offload your product, they sell to NPC for approximately 1.2k each.

53-61 - Tiger Leather - Dark Crystal: Tiger Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - This is a huge money maker. Head out to Batallia Downs and hunt Tigers. Again, this is around a 20% drop rate, but at least with this you only need 1 hide per synth instead of 2 like the Raptor Mantle synth. For the first few levels, farm as many hides as you can possibly hold, then head to San d'Oria and use HQ support. Once you hit 55-56 on these, you can safely farm the hides and synth them in the field. Tiger Leather is VERY profitable so you can definitely make a lot of your gil back here. Singles sell well because they are needed for a Gobbiebag Quest. They go for 5k each. But the REAL profit is selling stacks. The price fluctuates slightly, but you can expect anywhere between 45-50k per stack.

61-63 - Beak Mantle - Earth Crystal: Grass Thread, Cockatrice Skin x 2 - Grass Thread yet again! Please see Daggers, Yagudo death, Giddeus, and Wind Crystals for further information on how to obtain Grass Threads. The best spot for your Cockatrice Skins will be Labyrinth of Onzozo. The skin drop rate is around 20%. Since you're at 60-61 and this caps at 63 you can simply farm the skins and synth in the field. Beak Mantles are better off NPC'd. You get 1.6k per Beak Mantle. The real prize here is the Cockatrice Meat. The stack sells for 4000g each and is a very fast sell.

63-71 - Coeurl Leather - Dark Crystal: Coeurl Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - Target Mob: Master Coeurl - Location: The Sanctuary of Zi'tah - Farming wise, this is your best option for reaching the new sub cap of 70. Why do I say that? Master Coeurls have around a 25% drop rate on Hides, but the REAL prize is the Coeurl Meat. This is another large level gap, so for the first several levels of this, farm as many Hides as you can hold (and Coeurl Meat too) then head back to San d'Oria, get HQ support until you're around 66 or so. While you're in San d'Oria, drop off the Coeurl Meat at the Auction House to sell. Stacks of Coeurl Meat are selling for 25,000g per stack and are a very fast sell. IF YOU ARE ONLY TAKING LEATHERCRAFT TO 70, {Congratulations!} you're done! Good luck selling all those Coeurl Leathers! They aren't a fast sell at all. 4,000g for singles, 25,000g for a stack (slow sellers if at all) However, there's an "innovative" way to get rid of them and make a little gil in the process (next item on the list). However, IF YOU ARE CONTINUING TO 110, PROCEED TO TIGER MANTLES AND KEEP YOUR COEURL LEATHERS!!! THEY WILL BE USED IN A FUTURE SYNTH!!!

70-72 - Coeurl Cesti - Earth Crystal: Cesti, Coeurl Leather - This is a very simple synth. Various Weapon Shops in the 3 starter cities sell Cesti for around 150g each. If I recall, it depends on which nation is in 1st place in Conquest for that week. Find a shop selling Cesti, buy up a bunch, and begin making Coeurl Cestis. Since you're capped at 70, you can just make these right away without support. Sell these to NPC for a little over 2,000g each. Assuming you farmed all the Coeurl Hides yourself as you skilled up to this point, this is profit AND you don't have to wait for them to sell at the Auction House.

****FOR THOSE OF YOU STOPPING AT 70**** - Now that you're 70 (+1 with the Tanner's Gloves, you got them, right?) here's another fun thing you can make for some mad profits! You can also choose to skill on this up to 70 in place of the recommended Coeurl Leather!

63-71 - Lynx Leather: Dark Crystal, Windy Tea Leaf, Lynx Hide - Target Mob: War Lynx - Location: Meriphataud Mountains [S] - The Lynx are located to the north of the Campaign Battle area in a loop around a mountain. Go around and kill every War Lynx you come across. The drop rate on the Hide is actually pretty good! Around 40%. Lynx Leather is an AWESOME way to make some gil. They are used in some high level (105+) Clothcraft and Leathercraft items, and thus sell well. These do not sell as stacks, so don't list a stack of them accidentally. These sell individually for 30,000g each.

71-75 - Tiger Mantle - Ice Crystal: Black Tiger Hide, Wool Thread - You should know where to farm Tiger Hides by now (Batallia Downs), also I hope you've got some Clothcraft skill, the best way to get Wool Thread (mentioned earlier) is to desynth Gigas Socks (they stink too...). Ice Crystals/Clusters are easily farmed in Beaucedine Glacier and Xarcabard due to frequent Blizzard weather there. If you start these at 70, you shouldn't need HQ support, so just make these in the field. Also, assuming you have the Leatherworker's Torque and Tanner's Gloves (you should have them by now) you shouldn't have any issues with breaks. Tiger Mantles will not sell on the Auction House. Just sell these to NPC for about 1200g each. As long as you farmed everything you're making a small profit.

75-79 - Tiger Jerkin - Earth Crystal: Sheep Leather, Tiger Leather x 2 - Remember those Tiger Leathers I told you to save up? Use them here! Sheep Leather is also easily farmed in Beadeaux. Once you have everything gathered, make the Jerkins. It's ok to use up all your synthesis materials here. If you don't make it to the cap at 79 it's ok, the next item on the list will get you to 80 with no problems. Be sure to make a pair of Tiger Gloves for your Guild Test btw! Unfortunately, Tiger Jerkins do not sell on the Auction House. So just NPC these. They NPC for about 1800g.

75-80 - Manticore Leather - Dark Crystal: Manticore Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - This synth is mainly for those who weren't able to make it to 79 making Tiger Jerkins. This will get you to 80 no problem! Best spot to farm Manticore Hides is in Western Altepa Desert just west of the zone to the tunnel. Since you should be very near the cap at 80, just make these in the field. Manticore Leathers do sell pretty well (for a change) 10,000g for a single piece, and 110,000-120,000g for stacks. They ARE slow sellers, sadly. So if you struggle to sell these, hang onto them, as they are used in an optional synth pretty soon.

78/79-81 - Peiste Leather - Dark Crystal: Peiste Skin, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - This is a Gobbiebag item, and will sell well. The drop rate from the monster itself is abysmal. However, there are enough that drop from other sources that there will be plenty listed at the Auction House. Yes, I'm asking you to camp the Auction House here. Buy the skins whenever available. They will pop up for anywhere between 1,000g and 3,000g. However, the Leather sells for 10,000g each. So despite the fact you're buying the skins from the Auction House, you're still making a profit selling the leather. Don't sell as a stack, it won't sell.

78-84 - Raaz Leather - Dark Crystal: Raaz Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - The new Raaz type monsters (I just call 'em pigs) hang out in Kamihr Drifts on the continent of Adoulin. They're pretty nasty buggers, but with the introduction of Trust NPCs, they're easy to farm. On THF with TH7, the Hide is about a 45-50% drop rate, so bring along the crystals and the other materials. Assuming you've got the torque, body, and hands, you can make these in the field with ease. Take this to the cap at 84 and hang onto the leathers, you'll be using all of them up later.

79-85 - Coeurl Mantle - Ice Crystal: Coeurl Hide, Wool Thread - Wool Thread makes yet another appearance here! See Gigas's stinky socks and Lighting Crystals for your Wool Thread. Return to The Sanctuary of Zi'tah and make the mantles in the field. Assuming you have Tanner's Apron, Tanner's Gloves, and Leatherworker's Torque (+4 Leathercraft skill total) you should have NO PROBLEM making these. Take this to the 85 cap. Again, sadly, Coeurl Mantles simply will not sell at the Auction House, so just sell to NPC. They sell for around 2,000g so it's not too bad.

85-89 - Coeurl Jerkin - Earth Crystal: Sheep Leather, Coeurl Leather x 2 - If you made Coeurl Leathers to get to 70 and are taking Leather to 110, this is where you use those Coeurl Leathers. Sheep Leather returns yet again, head to Beadeaux and make your Leather there. Once you have a sufficient amount of Sheep Leather, start making the Jerkins. Try to make as many as you can until your inventory is near full. Don't sell these just yet, because the next item on the list actually uses Coeurl Jerkins and can give you further skill ups.

85-90 - Ogre Jerkin - Earth Crystal: Coeurl Jerkin, Manticore Leather, Undead Skin - This is the 2nd item in the "Coeurl Jerkin tree" that you can make and get skill ups off of. You made some Manticore Leathers a little while ago. If you still have some laying around, they're used here. Also, Undead Skins are a somewhat common drop off Doomed Toad type mobs. Best spot where there are multiple spawns is in Abyssea-Attohwa off Decayed Flesh, they are near Conflux #6. The drop rate is around 20%, but since there are so many in the area farming them will be a breeze. Once you get an Undead Skin drop, make the Ogre Jerkin there in the field. Ogre Jerkins are not good sellers, so just sell them to NPC. They sell to NPC for around 4,500g so it's actually pretty good.

89-91/92 - Tiger Mask - Ice Crystal: Tiger Hide x 2, Wool Thread, Wyvern Skin, Ram Leather - Ok! It's a lot of materials, so you'll be doing a lot of farming to just be able to make these. Wool Thread is easy, so is Ram Leather (see Abyssea-La Thiene and Rams for further info) the ONLY annoying part will be the Wyvern Skins. However, Abyssea is here to save your **** yet again! Svelldrakes in Abyssea-Grauberg have around a 40% drop rate on the Wyvern Skins. Assuming you're at 89 or 90, there is no need to get HQ support. Just make these in the field. This item will not sell on the Auction House at all, so just NPC them. They sell to NPC for only 1,000g. So you may even lose a little bit of gil here. The next item will make up for the loss.

91/92-97 - Square of Griffon Leather - Dark Crystal: Griffon Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - Griffon Hides drop in Dynamis-San d'Oria, and people who obtain them will almost always put them up at the Auction House. Just camp the Auction House for these, as there are people who farm Dynamis-San d'Oria daily and will list the Hides after they complete their runs. The hides are currently only going for 1,000g. The Leather is used in the final Gobbiebag quest, and are in high demand. They sell for 9,000 - 10,000g each. So there's some major profit to be made here. Take this to the Lv. 97 cap at all costs!

97-99 (Clothcraft sub 60? needs verification) - Chelona Boots - Earth Crystal: Karakul Thread, x3 Karakul Cloth, Platinum Thread, Amphiptere Leather - This is a new feet armor from the June 2012 update, and are in demand due to the "Fast Cast" on them. I am listing this here as an alternative option for skill ups, but I wouldn't go with spam making these up to 99. Only make some if you happen to have the materials laying around (or you farm them) because the feet armor themselves sell somewhat slow, and if you make too many of them, they will just clog up your inventory space. However, if you farm the Karakuls in Caedarva Mire and synth the threads and cloths in the field and also farm your own Amphiptere Hides, you can make a nice profit selling these at the Auction House.

97-100 - Urja Trousers - Earth Crystal: x2 Buffalo Leather, x2 Squamous Hide - This synth is required to get from Veteran rank to Expert rank, but you can also skill up on these! Buffalo Hides/Leather are somewhat common on the Auction House, so just buy them there. Here's the tricky part. The Squamous Hides are currently 50,000g for singles and 600k for stacks. I have a good LS and from time to time, we go out to North Gustaberg [S] and go on a murderous rampage killing every Drachenlizard we see. After about an hour or so of farming, we usually come away with about 2 full stacks (or close to it) of Squamous Hides. As long as the Squamous Hides are farmed, you are making gil!

97-102 - Panther Mask - Ice Crystal: Wool Thread, Ram Leather, Wyvern Skin, High-Quality Coeurl Hide x 2 - Wyvern Skins make a return appearance. Go kill Wyverns in Abyssea-Grauberg! Ram Leathers can be made in the field in Abyssea-La Thiene. Wool Threads? Broken record, you should know by now. Now, here's something new.....High-Quality Coeurl Hides make their first appearance! They are dropped by Torama in Labyrinth of Onzozo. However! Summoners making Magian Staves for Garuda will be in there killing them in bunches. Because of that, there is usually a steady stream of HQ Coeurl Hides on the Auction House. They have been steadily going for 1,000g each. However, if there is no supply available on the Auction House, head to the Labyrinth and farm them. With TH7 THF, it's around a 15-20% drop rate. Unfortunately, Panther Masks simply do not sell on the Auction House, so just sell directly to NPC for around 3,300g. So as long as you farm everything else, you'll make a small profit.

97-101 - Aetosaur Gloves - Earth Crystal: Squamous Hide, Raaz Leather, Leather Gloves - Welcome to what I call "Aetosaur Road"! What the bloody **** is an Aetosaur anyway? Whatever. Thanks to this armor set introduced some updates ago (sometime in 2013, I forget) the path is pretty clear all the way to 109, so listen up! That little Armor Shop in Southern San d'Oria is where you can get some Leather Gloves cheaply. Raaz Hides are farmed in Kamihr Drifts. If you farm them on THF main, and use some Trust NPCs (oh yeah, that's new too) it makes farming the Raaz a breeze as the drop rate is around 50%. Also, Raaz Hide to Raaz Leather is the same basic Hide to Leather synth which happens to cap at Lv. 84. I'll edit that in as well. Now, Squamous Hides. Only place to get them is in North Gustaberg [S] off Drachenlizards. And the only place they spawn is in the far northwestern corner of the map. Since every piece of Aetosaur equipment requires Squamous Hides, you'll be farming these Drachenlizards for a pretty long while. It WILL get annoying, and you WILL be tempted to buy off the Auction House, but if money is tight, I don't recommend it. At last check, a stack of Squamous Hides sell for 350,000g to 400,000g so you're much better off farming in the field. You should be able to make these easily in the field at 97 (assuming torque + hands + body + stall) as you get a Squamous Hide drop. Once you hit 100, I highly recommend farming and accumulating the synthesis materials, get HQ support from the NPC, and synth them in San d'Oria. At Lv. 100, with HQ support, you can hit T1 HQ status and can possibly make some HQ gloves while still skilling up. As for selling these, the NQ can sell for around 20,000g to 30,000g each, but are slow sellers. If you manage to HQ one or more while skilling from 100 to the synth's cap of 101, they sell for 900,000g to 1,000,000g, which is a pretty nice return for all of your hard work.

101-103 - Aetosaur Ledelsens - Earth Crystal: Squamous Hide, Raaz Leather, Rhodium Sheet, Leather Highboots - Please see Aetosaur Gloves and Urja Gloves for your Squamous Hide needs. That same armor shop in Southern San d'Oria also sells the Leather Highboots cheaply. Now, here's the problem. Rhodium Sheets. What the ****? Rhodium Ingots are a 93 Goldsmithing recipe, and converting them to sheets is capped at 96. There's no possible way you can make them yourself, sadly. This is one of the few times I will tell you to camp the Auction House. Camp the AH for Rhodium Ingots. They are a common drop in Lv. 105 Skirmish (Rala Waterways and Cirdas Caverns) and show up on the Auction House regularly, but they are expensive. 70,000g each. If you know someone who is a high level Goldsmith, have them convert the ingots to sheets for you. Once you've got your sheets, you're ready to roll. Again, just like the synth before, when you're 1 level away from capping, get HQ support and synth in San d'Oria for a chance at making some HQ boots. NQ Aetosaur Ledelsens sell for 50,000g each, and HQ sell for anywhere between 1,000,000g and 1,500,000g. Now, if you don't have a Goldsmithing buddy that can convert the ingots to sheets for you, or you don't have the capital to afford 70k a pop ingots, then see Urja Gloves below as an alternative synth to get up to 104.

102-104 - Sealord Leather - Dark Crystal: Sealord Skin, Windurstian Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - This is where Leathercraft starts to become VERY expensive. BUT you can stand to make a lot of gil too. This is another classic skin to leather synth involving a drop from "Bismarck" which is from Voidwatch T2 Tavnazian path. Unfortunately, you'll have to camp the Auction House for these, and buy them up as soon as you see them. On Shiva they go for a steady 150,000g. However, they sell on the Auction House for 200,000g. So you're making your gil back PLUS another 50k assuming you don't bust a synth and lose the skin.

101-104 - Urja Gloves - Earth Crystal: Buffalo Leather, x2 Squamous Hides - This is an EXCELLENT alternative for skill ups if you don't have the capital to purchase Sealord Skin en-masse. Here's the kicker....in order for this to be cheaper for you, you absolutely MUST farm the Squamous Hides yourself, or with LS mates. So head out with a small group (1 member with TH7 THF helps) and farm those Squamous Hides. Each hide that drops saves you from spending 50k (current Shiva server price) each. Buy the Buffalo Hides at AH and convert to leather, or buy already made Buffalo Leathers at AH. Urja Gloves sell to NPC for 3.5k each, so as long as you buy the Buffalo Leather for 3k or less, you are breaking even. A break even synth at such a high level is a freaking miracle at this point!

104-105 - Urja Ledelsens - (Smithing sub of 58-60 required) - Earth Crystal: x2 Squamous Hides, Buffalo Leather, Dark Bronze Sheet - I am able to confirm this is at least capped at 105, as it is still listed with the NPC that gives you recepies that are 1 to 4 levels above your current skill. Squamous Hides make yet another appearance. Get a bunch of friends together and farm the hides to save yourself from spending a ton of gil buying them at the Auction House. You can also choose to farm the Buffalo Hides yourself as well, or buy them at the Auction House for 2000-3000g each. Here's the problem. NO ONE makes Dark Bronze Sheets! You'll have to make them yourself. Here's the problem with that.......it is a Smithing Lv. 74 synth to make the Ingot, and 75 to convert to a Sheet. Bite the bullet and get your Smithing up to 67, then start making Dark Bronze Ingots up to 70 (you'll need it!), then to Sheets and use up the product to make the Urja Ledelsens. The ingots themselves aren't too expensive to make really. It's Fire Crystal: Darksteel Ore, Tin Ore, x2 Copper Ore. You can buy Darksteel Ores at the Auction House (current Shiva price is 3000-5000g) and the rest of the stuff can be purchased cheaply at the Smithing Guild Shop in Bastok's Metalworks. You can even get HQ support at the Smithing Guild to help ensure you successfully convert the Ingots to Sheets and minimize breaks that way. OH the things you have to go through just to get another level as cheaply as possible in Leathercraft......

104-106 - Aetosaur Helm - Earth Crystal: x2 Squamous Hide, Raaz Leather - This synth is perfect for getting you to 106. If you still have Raaz Leather left over, you can easily use it here. If not, see the Raaz Leather entry (84 cap) for further information. The ONLY annoying thing about this synth is that it requires 2 Squamous Hides instead of one, which essentially doubles your work load in order to attempt a synth. Just bite the bullet up to 105 synthing in the field as you farm. Once you're 105, farm and accumulate as much material as you can, and synth in San d'Oria with HQ support for a chance at HQ synths while skilling up. NQ helms sell at AH for 50k (slow seller) but HQ Helms sell for 300,000g to 500,000g. If your NQ helms don't sell at all, you can simply just NPC them. Assuming you farmed everything in the field, it's still profit although not as much profit as you had hoped. But do try to sell any HQ you make at the AH for some bigger returns.

105 - 107 - Hexed Boots: Earth Crystal, Serica Cloth, Kukulkan Skin, Lynx Leather, Silver Thread - This is where Leathercraft begins to become incredibly expensive. Unfortunately there's really no way around it unless you're in a linkshell that does Voidwatch/Provenance (Beguiling Radiance) on a regular basis. Kukulkan Skins are a drop off, you guessed it, Kukulkan in Abyssea-Konschtat. Lynx Leather is mentioned earlier in the guide, and Silver Thread is common on the Auction House. By this point, you should have the Leatherworker's Torque (+2 skill) Tanner's Apron (+1) Tanner's Gloves (+1) and the Tanner's Stall is up in your Mog House (gives +5 to your skill) Unfortunately, at 105 Leather with HQ support (another +3 skill) you don't quite reach T1 status yet, so your chances of making an HQ are slim to none until you reach 106 Leather. Once you hit 106, you will have a small chance at HQ and some pretty good gil. As of today, Serica Cloths sell for 1,200,000g, and Kukulkan Skins sell for 250,000g each. NQ results hardly sell, but last sales have been at 30,000g. IF you manage to HQ this, you can possibly make 20,000,000g (yes, 20 MILLION gil)

106-107 - Aetosaur Trousers: Earth Crystal: x2 Squamous Hide, Raaz Leather, Leather Trousers - That little armor shop in Southern San d'Oria has the Leather Trousers for cheap. You should know by now where to get Raaz Leather as well as Squamous Hide. This is only a 1 level jump, so farm all of the materials and accumulate. Go to the Leather guild and get HQ support to hit that T1 HQ status. The trousers are actually a somewhat in-demand item. Not only does it have a nice Haste stat on it, it's got some Store TP, which is appreciated. NQ sell for 20,000g on the Auction House, but HQ sell for 1,300,000g up to 1,500,000g. So if you manage to make some HQ during skill ups you can make a nice chunk of gil.

107-109 - Aetosaur Jerkin: Earth Crystal: x2 Squamous Hide, x2 Raaz Leather - By now, you should know where to get all this stuff. For the first level of this, synth in the field. Once you hit 108, farm and accumulate materials, and synth in San d'Oria with HQ support. NQ sell for 30,000g while HQ sell for 500,000g each. However, if your inventory is getting full, these sell to NPC for 11,200g (plus some change) with max fame, so even if you farmed everything yourself, you get a decent profit.

109-110 - Aput Mantle - Ice Crystal: Akaso Thread, Cehuetzi Pelt - Akaso threads are a clothcraft synth result of Akaso Grass, which is harvested in Yorcia Weald. If you don't have any Clothcrafter friends, or you're not in the mood to hang in Yorcia Weald for hours on end, buy the thread at Auction. They go for about 25,000g each. Now here's the hard part. Cehuetzi Pelt drop off of the Delve v.2 mega boss from Kamihr Drifts. Not only are the pelts used for a multitude of other things (JSE weapons, relic armor upgrades, etc.) they are pretty damned expensive too! Anywhere from 1,300,000g to 1,400,000g on Shiva as of 10/10/14. If you happen to be in a LS that does Delve on the regular and knows of your situation (trying to get to 110 leathercraft) and they are ok with losing the potential profits to the LS as a whole by letting you have the pelts and not selling at AH, then you're one lucky *******! If not, then you're stuck having to blow the gil just to attempt the synth. Oh, it gets worse. According to FFXIAH, thus far, only a few Aput Mantles (NQ) have sold on Shiva, and no HQ have sold at all (or haven't even been made yet). So regardless, you're losing gil on this no matter what you do. Just bite the bullet and do it.

Totally forgot about this lil' gem, now that it's used for one of the newer Gobbiebag quests, this stuff will be in much higher demand.

93-97 - Square of Griffon Leather - Dark Crystal: Griffon Hide, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - Griffon Hides drop in Dynamis-San d'Oria, and people who obtain them will almost always put them up at the Auction House, currently between 4000-5000 gil each. Snap up whatever Griffon Hides you can off the Auction House, process them into Leather, and resell at the Auction House. Since they are now used in one of the new Gobbiebag quests from the recent April 2009 update, the demand is high, and will sell fast for almost as much as you bought the hide for (4000-5000 gil). This will be a GREAT way to get yourself to 97 on the cheap!

Entry will be added into the OP between Tiger Mask and Panther Masks with some additional edits.

I'm also going to add this, since demand for this item is high now that it's used in Gobbiebag #9 quest.

78/79-81 - Peiste Leather - Dark Crystal: Peiste Skin, Windy Tea Leaf, Distilled Water - This item is now in high demand due to the recent April 2009 update. Be aware, though, that this item is a high rish/high reward type deal. The reason why? Peiste Skins are a pretty rare drop, and due to that rarity, the skins sell anywhere between 30,000-40,000 gil (Current Ramuh AH sales history as of 4/24/09) However, the Leather itself is selling anywhere between 40,000-50,000 gil each, so there is potential for a near 10k profit if your synths are successful. However, if you bust and lose the skin, that's a whole bunch of gil down the drain, so make these at your own risk. You CAN totally skip these if you wish, but if you want to have a go at these, then be my guest!

Entry will be added into the OP with proper edits to accomodate the change.

I recommend buying the guild point abilities of Leather Ensorcellment and Leather Purification. I made so much gil leveling through the 40s and 50s thanks to powder boots, haste belts and high breath mantles. On my server (Asura) it was well worth the investment.

I didn't take the "PAINFUL" route of raptor mantles which cap at level 53; instead I did buffalo hides to leather (49 cap) and then leather to laminated buffalo leather (53 cap). I made out like a bandit.

True, I should add the High Breath Mantles as an option to get to 52 (they cap at 52 right?) for those who do have the Leather Ensorcellment key item.

Unfortunately, at the time, when I hit the Ram Mantle cap, I was nowhere close to 40k GP to be able to get the key item. That's why I did it the hard way.

Cost me about 300k to do it, but a quick KSNM 30 "Come into my Parlor" run fixed that right up (got Forest Rope on 1 run, and a Trailer's Kukri on 2nd run, both my orbs)

I'll add another section to the OP entitled "Options for those with Leather Ensorcellment and Leather Purification key items" whenever I get some downtime. Weekends, I'm on FFXI, I actually whipped up that guide over about 3 hours of down time here at work. LOL

Very nice guide. This is very similar to what I did, with a couple of minor differences. Here are some alternatives:

Lizard Cesti 11-17You can also buy Cesti from NPC in South Sandy, and they're cheaper than Leather Gloves. Not a big deal, but they also cap at 17 rather than 16. Also, for clarification, the Labyrinth Lizards in the Crawlers' Nest basement have a stupidly high drop rate, so be sure to farm those rather than the Maze Lizards in the scrota room.

Bugard Leather 21-24I wanted to avoid wool thread in the early levels of Leathercraft, so I opted to farm bugards in Lufaise Meadows rather than fiddle with Dhalmel Mantles. Bugard skins have a very high drop rate from Gigantobugards, even with TH1. Bugard Leather sells well on AH in singles and in stacks.

I also skipped straight to Parchment at 24. I had no problem selling my stacks on AH, but I may have gotten lucky.

Ram Leather 35-36You can take the Willow Log recipe up to 36. Lord knows you'll need as much Ram Leather as you can get.

Himantes 49-52Himantes only uses one raptor skin per synth rather than two, so they're slightly less painful. Still not much fun. I skipped ahead to Tiger Leather at 52 just because the losses from the breaks were still less than the losses from buying Raptor Skins.

I did want to try and make Bugard Leather when I hit 21, but the Bugard Skins were in such short supply, plus I was in pure "PL mode" if you know what I mean. That's why I went straight to making Dhalmel Mantles. It actually wasn't that big a loss because at the time, Dhalmel Hides were cheap at the AH and I also did pretty well farming them myself as well.

good guide yeager... only things you might want to add is that this one is perfect for speed if you have working capitol... however if you are low funds, you might want to skip the tiger jerkin portion and go maticore leather (from 74 or so to 80), which also will save you a level fo coeurl mantles as well.

The other route (since i have made the path three times now) is get the key item and make powder boots in low 40's, and then turn those ram mantles into high breath ones to bridge the gap instead of the much more expensive raptor mantles.

however if you are low funds, you might want to skip the tiger jerkin portion and go maticore leather (from 74 or so to 80), which also will save you a level fo coeurl mantles as well.

The other route (since i have made the path three times now) is get the key item and make powder boots in low 40's, and then turn those ram mantles into high breath ones to bridge the gap instead of the much more expensive raptor mantles.

The reason why I have Tiger Jerkins in there is because I saved all of the Tiger Leathers I had made getting myself to 61. It's not like I was buying Tiger Leather stacks at the AH, I had a bunch of them saved in storage for future use.

However, I do agree with the Manticore Leather synth. My personal experience was, it turned out I had made enough Tiger Leathers to carry me from 75 all the way to the Tiger Jerkin cap which is 79, which is when I began making Coeurl Mantles (I'm 81 now). Making Manticore Leathers to get to 80 would be just a very small bridge, but saving those leathers would help in the long run when making Coeurl Jerkins later on, to make Ogre Jerkins.

Yes.....EDITS! A full 3 years later I might add! I apologize for the epic necrobump, but now that the skill cap is 110 I would like to give this guide the update it needs!

I'll be making the edits in the OP and I'll be tossing in some new stuff for the earlier levels too! Look for them!

Edited, Jul 7th 2012 4:47am by YeagertheBearded

Good luck in your quest for level 110. If you haven't seen the recent census, here's the short version: 11 characters have reached 110 fishing and 11 characters have reached 110 cooking across all servers, while 0 characters have reached 110 in any other craft. Whether that's still the case today is unknown. But either way, if you do manage to hit 110, you will be in very select company.

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Lyonheart, like Eorzia, will be reborn in FFXIV!

FFXI veteran (Lyonheart and Lakiskline of Lakshmi) 1/467 on signed HQ Weskit!!!

When it comes to sitting around not doing anything for long periods of time, only being active for short windows, and marginal changes and sidegrades I'd say FFXI players were the perfect choice for politicians.

On the 63-71, there doesn't seem to be much of a market for Coeurl Leather. So I bought a bunch of Cesti in North Sandy and made Coeurl Cesti. Sure, most gear synths suck, but this one doesn't. It's only one level higher, and they NPC for 2K, so not only do you get twice the synths for your money, you can actually get most of your money back!

Also, agreed about NW Zi'tah. I tried a lot of different places (even Abyssea has a low drop rate, I got three hides and two AF3 feet in one trip), and Zi'tah seems to be the only place with a good drop rate on Coeurl Hides.

Almost another 2 years later, and yes, another guide revamp!!! I'll be editing the OP with further information, this time all the way to 110! However, I wouldn't be too shocked in the near future a cap up to 120 or even beyond that, so SE can introduce Item Level 121, 123, 125, 127, 129 gears.

Anyhow, I'm editing the OP. THANK YOU AETOSAUR SET!!!! For reals! That set alone makes getting to 109 Leathercraft a freaking breeze!